Weekly Stories

French beauty giant L’Oréal has developed a smart skin patch that monitors exposure to ultraviolet rays. The innovative beauty solution was unveiled at consumer technology show CES in Las Vegas this week.

As most schoolchildren are told from a young age, A stands for Apple; April, on the other hand, surely stands for the Apple Watch. The industry’s most hotly-anticipated wearable has been preceded by months of speculation – could it sell as well as the iPad on its launch? Will it provide a natural fit for fashion editorials? Now, on the eve of its launch, keen industry-watchers are looking to Baselworld (the watch industry’s international trade fair) for possible rivals. There, a crop of new announcements are proving themselves worthy contenders to the smart watch throne – one which, as we should remind ourselves, Apple hasn’t ascended to quite yet.

Decoded Fashion hits SXSW Interactive on March 13-17 – in the run-up, we’ll be posting content that gives you a sneak peek of what to expect: including panel sessions, special events and the return of our Mentorship Hub.

SXSW Interactive is almost here! In the run-up for the festival on March 13-17, it's time to take a moment to sign up for our special events, featuring new hot startups as well as established brands. And most involve a cocktail or two.

Tomorrow, on November 18, the worlds of fashion, retail, and tech will join forces for the kick off of Decoded Fashion's two-day New York Summit. Rebecca Minkoff, Nordstrom, Barneys, kate spade, Google, Style.com, and more will meet to discuss wearable tech challenges and the latest ideas around retail innovation.

One of the highlights of the summit will be the finals of the Beautiful Functionwearables competition, which aims to identify the most consumer-friendly and beautiful wearable device launched this year. Five finalist startups, chosen because of the striking design and functionality of their wearable, will pitch live on stage to a panel of industry leaders on November 18. All finalists' wearables cater to the U.S. market, are ready to market today and are currently available for pre-order. The winning team will be featured on Style.com.

The finalists are:

Cuff: Cuff serves as an alert system, with the ability to track your fitness and send notifications. The interchangeable modules, called CuffLincs, connect directly to an iPhone or Android application.

Jon Lou: The 314 handbag charges your smartphone and lights up to help you find your interior items. With powerful off-the-grid energy developed at MIT, you can keep an iPhone 6 charged for one month. Made in Italy.

Kovert Designs: Kovert's modular collection of smart designer jewellery allows customers to insert the Altruis Stone into different ring, bracelet and necklace designs. Using their app, the user can set the smart stone to vibrate for particular notifications (filtered by key contact or keyword). Kovert will be announcing a small handful of collaboration collections with brands/designers in 2015.

Machina: A hoodie with speakers integrated into it. It allows its wearer to hear music without having to insert headphones into their ear. Music can be controlled via Bluetooth, using an iPhone, iPod or Android device.

Viawear: Tyia, Viawear’s smart bracelet, sends notifications using gentle vibrations and color. Tyia is designed to make things easier, richer, more beautiful and more focused, helping you connect with real life instead of just your digital one.

"There is a lot of excitement, but also confusion about the possibilities for wearables and fashion today. During next week’s summit, we will reveal big players outside of everyone’s radar. We will discuss what matters in the immediate future and expose the technology that will help get us there," said Liz Bacelar, founder and president of Decoded Fashion. "The Decoded Fashion Summit is about being ahead of the story, discarding pre-conceived notions and learning new possibilities emerging around the world."